High-quality Water for High-quality Blooms

Nestled away from the busyness of everyday life, a calming oasis welcomes guests to explore nature in Crestwood, Kentucky. Sprawling across more than 60 acres, Yew Dell Botanical Gardens features a wide variety of plants and flowers with numerous gardens, trails, and even a castle.

“There’s really nothing like Yew Dell in this part of the country,” said Paul Cappiello, executive director of Yew Dell Botanical Gardens.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Yew Dell began as a family-owned nursery. Since 2002, people from all over have visited to enjoy the abundant variety of blooms and find unique additions for their own gardens.

“What we’re doing in this greenhouse and the kind of production that we’re doing in this facility, we couldn’t do without the Louisville Pure Tap® quality of water that we get,” Cappiello shared.

He says they use the manmade Reflection Lake’s water supply where it makes the most sense. But everything else is Made With Pure Tap®.

“We obviously can’t clean water and purify water to the extent that Louisville Water can. That water (from Reflection Lake), we can use in some areas, but it would be very difficult for us to use that kind of water in this greenhouse where we really require that very high-quality water,” he explained.

That same high-quality water enhances the menu at Martha Lee’s Café.

“Day to day here at Yew Dell, we use Pure Tap quite a lot. When we make soups, we use Pure Tap water; when we make stocks, when we boil pasta, cook rice, anything we use water to cook, we use Pure Tap,” said Mike Ross.

As the chef and food services manager for Yew Dell, Ross is always trying to think outside the garden.

“One of my favorite things we do with Pure Tap is we make a soda that you can only get here. Our horticulture team harvests buds and flowers from different plants. We then get to wash those and steep them in a simple syrup made with Pure Tap and sugar to get the flavor from the petals. We then add carbonated water and that syrup to make our very own soda that you can only get here at Yew Dell,” Ross said.

There’s also a fresh pitcher filled with Pure Tap every day to keep guests and volunteers hydrated as they wander around the Gardens.

Yew Dell unveiled the renovated Castle Gardens in summer 2025, offering a perfect spot for tranquility.

“That castle was the pool house for the family that originally owned this property. So, when we redesigned that garden, we wanted to bring back a water feature, so that we sort of use it as a nod to the history of the property,” Cappiello said.

Louisville Water is proud to help nurture the growth at this Oldham County treasure.